The Escape
by MuteError
Summary: A WildStar roleplay gone full-fledged story. This is just what happens when a sassy Aurin crime lord and a scowling Cassian ICI Agent happen to find themselves locked in the same cell with plenty of resulting misadventures and intrigue.


It was truly a lovely night within the valley of Algoroc. The stars were vibrantly twinkling, being visible due to the lack of light pollution on this side of Nexus and the planet's two moons shone brightly down over the open plains and loftite studded ravines and mountainsides. Not exactly the best night to be out sneaking and trying to get in trouble, but Sly had been doing just that. It was kind of her thing.

Which is why Sly had ended up in a cell at a random Darkspur Cartel's basecamp enjoying what bits of night air managed to seep through the barred window of her desolate cell. Bright green fur and an ever-twitching tail did not blend well with bare red or blue rock.

Still, lovely view and all that. Sly grumbled to herself as ears listened at the plodding steps of her captors. She needed the bastards to be further off to escape, but they seemed to be approaching?

Sly put on an innocent smile as she stretched out on the dusky cot set in the cel while smoothing down her shirt. At least they had left some clothing on her, for the night was a rather chilly one. The Aurin's jacket of course had been the one article of clothing to have secret pockets along with her Stalker tech. The Cartel's thugs had removed that and all her goodies, belts, packs, and such. Oh, and her claws. Those were important.

Sadly, all of that was tossed on a random workbench down the hall from where her cell was located. They hadn't even bothered to lock up her stuff for safekeeping as far as her ears had picked up! She suspected they had gone through all her pouches and taken out any narcotics she had on hand. STILL, a grimy and worn grey top along with shorts wasn't enough to keep the cold back within her sad little cage.

As the sound of footsteps grew louder, the shadows of multiple Cartel grunts fell upon the cell bars, blocking the light from their fire. Lifting her head up slightly to get a look, Sly could just make out the outline of two hulking thugs and what looked like a person being dragged between them.

"Yew've got a visitor." One of them drawled arrogantly as he unlocked the cell doors. Drawing out his pistol, he aimed it at the Aurin in case she had any thoughts of escape. As he watched, the other thug yanked the new prisoner to their feet and gave them a rude shove into the cell. The figure grunted with pain as they tumbled to the ground in a cloud of dirt.

"Now play nice."

Laughing cruelly as they relocked the cell, the thugs departed to rejoin their companions. Sly made no move as she gained a new cellmate, her tail didn't even flick and she kept still beyond eyes turning to peer at the newcomer. He looked rather roughed up and she had none of her usual ointments or herbs at hand to help the poor sod. She waited still, listening for the retreat of the two thugs before the Aurin sprang to life.

Coughing and hacking, the new prisoner struggled to sit, drawing the Aurin's attention back to himself. The thugs had left him with little more than a ragged pair of pants, leaving his shivering torso covered in sweat and dirt. His head bowed with pain and exertion, the man finally managed to pull his knees beneath him as he wrapped his arms protectively around his bare skin.

"Hey, you doing alright there dear?" Her voice was soft as the Aurin crouched beside her new cellmate, tail instantly draping over his bare back to provide some form of warmth since the man was obviously chilled. You'd think the Cartel would be kind enough to give their prisoners a blanket, right? No such luck.

"Is anything broken?" Sly's eyes darted over the man's exposed skin as she tried to decipher any telling signs of new bruises that could hint at deeper damage. Then she paused, eyes narrowing at the human.

Wait. Waaiiitafuckingminute.

Sly finally got around to looking at the man. Well, his face. She knew that specific face, even if he currently wasn't glaring. The pained look was alllmoosstt akin to his usual scowl. "Nameless!?"

Her brain tried to catch up with this twist of events. Of all the people to get stuck in a cell with, it had to be him! A snobbish ICI Agent who always seemed to attract trouble to him like stink on a malverine. He always seemed to show up in the worst possible places to drive the Aurin to distraction. Still, the man remained a fun creature to tease ceaselessly and he was buying the more legal medicinal products she dealt in for a pretty hefty credit rate. Sly sighed.

Fate currently loathed her right now. Not only had she tripped up and had her nanite-tech short out at the worst possible moment, but she was in a cell with this Cassian BASTARD.

So it took a few beats before Sly recollected herself enough to get her usual playful visage back on for the Agent. "Oh, sweetie we really should stop meeting like this.", She purred out. Sly wore a smirk now. Really, the whole situation was rather amusing.

With a groan, the Cassian rolled a single icy eye up towards his new cellmate.

"By the Emperor..." He swore as he instantly recognized the green-furred female beside him. He couldn't believe it. No. Wait. He could. It seemed that everywhere he went, this woman was always there. She was like a horrible disease he couldn't shake.

Straightening himself up as though suddenly consciously aware of his pathetic state, he opened his mouth to add some other caustic piece when another coughing fit doubled him over. Hissing between his teeth at the pain each spasm brought he promptly turned his head and spat up a mouthful of blood.

"Admit it...you missed...hhrnn...me..." The man huffed as he sat back up, glaring with pure exasperation at Sly.

She drew back only a fraction as the Cassian went into a coughing fit and spat blood on the floor, but Sly could not help rolling her eyes for even in this state he was being his usual bitter self. "Oh yes, sweetie. My heart was aching." She muttered dryly as her body shifted closer while fingers began gingerly prodding about his body for inspection of wounds to why he was coughing so. Blood was not a good sign.

"Now then, do you think you have broken bones or bruised ribs?" Sly was no medic, but she had a basic grasp of things to know he would be next to useless if something was broken. Maybe he just bit his tongue and that was the cause of the blood?

"We can't really escape if you won't be able to move...Did they do a number on your guts? Pity. They were kinder to my insides, but far more...touchy with the outside parts." These words Sly did growl out, tail tip twitching against the Agent's skin in indignation. There would be a few slit throats by the end of the night if Sly had her way.

Managing to straighten out his spine, he looked at the Aurin with what may have been sympathy. "Bruised ribs" The Cassian reported automatically. "Bit my tongue when they threw me in. Plenty of lacerations on the skin, but nothing needing immediate...uhnn, attention."

She nodded and glanced about the room again, "We could rip up the moldy mattress for it's fabric and get it about your middle for some support." Sly paused, then because she just couldn't help herself as well as wanting a lighter mood. "-or my shirt but I suspect both are too filthy for a prim and proper Cassian."

Unable to contain himself, the man sputtered out in wheezing laughter at the sheer absurdity of the situation. Doubling over with a mixture of mirth and pain, he barely managed to hack out a reply.

"Far too filthy."

No, there was no helping the honest grin Sly had on her face now. She got the Agent to laugh with the bonus that the same laughter was causing him more pain! Maybe tonight wasn't so bad?

Holding his arms around himself until he had managed to calm the convulsions, the Cassian held out his hand to the Aurin to help him towards the cot.

"We'll just have to find something up to your standards later then!", "Sly chirped out as she took his hand to tug the man back to his feet. It takes a bit of hauling, maneuvering, and more jostling that would leave him hurting to get him to the cot but soon enough Mr. Agent was properly situated. Sly had no issue with perching on it with him.

"Now then, I assume the Cartel stripped you down of all your goodies to leave on the same bench where my stuff was, yeah?"

"Whatever gave you that idea?" The agent replied dryly. Tentatively he stretched his body out flat on the cot, running his hands over his skin to check for any further damage he hadn't noticed. Satisfied that he was still in a working, if somewhat battered state, he turned his icy gaze to the woman.

"Oh, the fact that you lack even a proper shirt now Nameless. How can you bear the shame?" She tutted at him, tail swishing lazily as she glanced about the room again. Having the Agent here did put a damper on her whole escape plan. He was so loud!

"The potential head trauma is helping." He sighed, pressing his palm to his forehead. "You, however, are not."

"Well, it's certainly not my fault you happened to just blunder in where I was napping. I was here first." Sly swished her tail with a cheeky smile on her lips.

"Right, how inconsiderate of me. What was I thinking?"

"You're human, so I'll forgive your inability to function properly."

"That would be a Cassian, Aurin." He hissed irritably. "Hard to imagine you would forget that."

Teeth flashed and ears went back as a humorless smirk coiled Sly's lips. "I fail to see the difference."

The retort was almost off his tongue before the agent thought better of it. Reminding his fellow inmate he was part of the Empire that had taken her planet was probably not the best idea. There would be time for that later. For now, he just snapped his mouth shut and sighed between his teeth.

Sly scrubbed a hand over her face, considering exactly how she was going to sneak out of here with the new dead weight. She couldn't exactly knock him out and leave him here. The Aurin blinked, ears flicking up as she glanced at the Cassian. Well, she certainly could. This was no neutral territory or an assigned mission where they had to play nice.

She sighed, running fingers through her bangs then blinked again as her fingertips touched the flower there. Sly instantly brightened, perking up.

"You have a plan?" The agent asked, peering over as the Aurin seemed suddenly invigorated.

Sly rolled her eyes to the ceiling before shooting the Agent a look that spoke volumes as to how much intelligence she knew he didn't possess. "Of course I have a plan. When would I ever not have a plan? I'm alway full of plans!" While she was rambling, her tail tip swatted him in the face for good measure because well...just because.

"My plan is that we escape." Sly grins as she starts fiddling with the flower in her hair. Even though she had been patted down and disheveled, that still remained comically enough.

The Cassian shot her a dirty look as he tried to wipe the fur that found its way onto his tongue, resulting in only replacing it with grime and dried blood.

"Never trust a florist to do an operative's work." He grumbled.

Ah, right. Good. He still thought her rather useless. Sly flashed a smile.

Taking another moment to catch his breath, the Cassian propped an elbow below his back, holding out the other arm for her to help him sit up. Now that his pain had settled to a murderous ache, it was time he got a good look at their situation.

While the she aided the Agent with sitting back up, Sly mulled over if she should still play the rather innocent florist and allow this one to do the heavier lifting as it were. He would make a delightful decoy if they were to tumble into a rough situation.

Now between the two, who did the Cartel want more? This Cassian was obviously an Agent because the stuck up fool couldn't even walk about without declaring his ICI involvement by his posture alone. There was a plenty good chance that the Cartel still was befuddled as to why they had picked up her green-furred self, thus they'd most likely gun for him over her if she were to make a break for it... Innocent act it was then.

"Right, but you silly little thing-" Sly plucked the flower free, dropping it into the Agent's lap as she held up the hair pin. "You don't have this." Another grin and Sly was bouncing up and across the room in a blink to end up at the door, fiddling with the lock after making some adjustments to the pin's shape. "The door should be open in no time."

Half walking, half stumbling over to her side, the Cassian pressed in to peer over her shoulder. His breath puffing softly on her ears, he peered at her work with approval. This clearly was not the first time she had done this.

"Just a florist, hmm?" He remarked with the tone that told her he had suspected more for quite some time. "Something tells me you were not exactly here to sell flowers..."

"Yes, just a florist. Did you not ever have to escape out of locked doors as a kit or any such thing?" Sly grumbled some, hoping to not get into exactly why she was here. She had yet to work out that excuse and even she couldn't say she had been picking flowers this late.

Setting a hand on her arm, he forced her to pause. Sly had been ignoring him as she focused on her work. Then she did pause at the touch, eyes flicking up as she turned her head slightly

"Wait a moment before you try that. We need to scope out what is out there. Make a plan. Last thing we want is for them to see the door unlocked before we know where to go."

"Isn't it obvious? We go to where our gear is to pick it up, put it on and phase shift into something less noticeable. You know, like a shadow?" Sly's tail swished along the floor as she was eager to get out of this tight little space and back into fresh air. The lack of clothing in this cold wasn't helping matters., nor was the company.

"Uh huh." The agent sounded entirely unconvinced. Peering out between the bars, he attempted to build a mental map of what he could see.

"Where are our supplies then?" He commanded. "Where are the guards? Are there patrols?" He gave her a scornful look. "Our effects will not do us much good if we are gunned down on the way there..."

Sly continues to fiddle with the lock, trying to recall what her little Aurin friend Gem had taught her on such things. "Please I do wish you would stop talking. These are Cartel thugs we're talking about here. They are not so organized and if you had any observational skills, you would have noted the layout of this building as you were dragged in." She huffed at him over her shoulder.

"They stripped me down in the room just three doors down the hallway. I suspect they used the same room for you, so our items should still be waiting there were they dropped them. Inside patrols? Doubtful but aren't you a skilled Agent, Nameless? Can't you at least take one thug out?" Mutter, grumble. Sly's fur was starting to prick and her ears were flat against her skull now.

The agent gave her a scathing look.

"I will try harder to pay attention to where my goods are stored when I am next beaten unconscious." He growled. "My sincerest apologies."

"Well you should", Sly hissed back as she tried to coax the lock into opening for her. "Don't you know anything about-" The Aurin stopped, scolding at herself and the lock because she wasn't suppose to know anything about being an observant little spy either.

"...Also I'm cold." Was she pouting? Maybe.

He considered explaining to her that he really would rather not get into a fist fight while battered and bruised but gave up before the words could escape his swollen tongue. Now that the insane humor of the situation had dulled a bit by the reality of their predicament he found himself growing more irritated by her sassy attitude. The frustration and anger helped to get his blood flowing anyway. And there was no denying the chill look to the Aurin's skin. Short of folding her in his arms, she was not going to find any warmth here and with the state of things he figured it would be safer to hug a Garr.

"Fine." He sighed. As he left her to finish the lock, the Cassian crossed back to the mattress and tore free a few long strips of filthy cloth. Wrapping them around his fists, he moved back to the Aurin's side.

She was getting out of this cell, slinking down that hallway and getting her jacket back or by the Mother Tree so help- Click.

Sly's posture relaxed fully. "There we go. Now then, if you haven't noticed? No one has wandered along to shush our bickering. Also, if you really had not notice? I am an Aurin who owns a rather impressive set of ears." Those very rabbit ears sat right up on her skull, facing forward to listen down the hallway. "-and even with you going on, I have yet to hear footsteps nearby. If we take it slow, we should have plenty of time to tuck ourselves away before being discovered. You can walk softly, I presume?"

Sly looked back up to the Cassian as she stood up herself and ever so gently opened the door.

In answer, the Cassian slipped out the door and padded silently down the hallway, every line in his body alert and ready. All thoughts of irritation and exasperation with the Aurin melted instantaneously. He waited briefly for the woman to catch up with him, keeping half an eye on her ears for any sign of trouble as he mentally backtraced their way to the storage room.

Sly might as well have been the Agent's shadow for how well she kept behind him after silently closing the cell's door, even if it would only take one glance to show that they had escaped. She mentally counted the doors as they went, ears perked and constantly listening while she followed along on quiet bare feet.

Blessedly, the third door down the hallway was unlocked so the Cassian had no trouble getting them both into the room. Once in, Sly slinked about the room sniffing here and there at the air before finding herself before the bench containing all of their clothing. Here Sly allowed herself to heave a sigh of relief as she carefully picked up her jacket and pulled it on.

The agent waited a moment for her to don her gear, making sure that if someone were to have blundered in, they were not both caught half-dressed. When she seemed ready, he quickly pulled on his own clothing, unable to suppress the soft hiss that escaped through his teeth as the armor scraped across his tender skin. His suit had a few vials of medicinal injections left, but he decided it would be best to wait until they had cleared the camp. None of the wounds were serious enough to warrant immediate attention.

The claws went on after the jacket, then Sly was fiddling with pockets and snapping a belt about her hips while the Agent kept watch. She would have released a string of curses for the lack of many of her usual pocket items were missing. No 'flash' powder to disorient, no vials of any form of medication or even the tiny tube of ointment, none of the quick-dissolving tablets that would knock even a full grown male Granok off his feet. Another pat down revealed that some of the custom order injection units a certain grey-furred Aurin ordered were still in place under a well concealed pocket. Bless small miracles. All of this would have to do.

Sly wasn't getting a rush of technology and new sensations like the Agent most likely was as he donned his own clothing. Being a tree climbing barbarian that lived in a jungle had it's advantages for the refined hearing, light feet, and fluid motions were natural to the Aurin. Being from a backwater planet had it's advantages. She was already ready to press on, looking expectantly at the Agent.

Giving the Aurin a brief glance to be sure she was ready, the agent stepped forwards in point again. As the serum in his blood stirred to echo his armor's interface, he could already feel the strength and grace returning to his limbs. Now he was in his element... Ghosting to the door, the agent pushed it open and ran straight into one of the thugs.

The human thug's jaws dropped in pure shock as the Cassian appeared in front of him. He blinked a few times, trying to process his predicament before attempting to fumble for his gun. Unfortunately for him, the agent was faster. With surprising force, the Cassian struck out with his fist, making contact with the thug's face with a sickening crunch. As the man's hands reacted to shield his now broken nose, the agent followed immediately with a vicious uppercut. Then swift as a viper he lashed out with his other arm, the alloy claws slipping free from his gauntlets and across the now exposed throat of his victim, painting the walls with his victory. Before the body had hit the floor, the agent was already moving.

Those long ears of hers? They were making Sly's head snap up a moment too late as the Agent opened the door to only end up face to face with one of the Cartel's boys. Idiot, idiot, IDIOT! Too loud was the meaty sound of fist smashing into break the thug's nose. Again, the connection of fist to jaw felt like an explosion to the Aurin's ears. This man clearly wasn't into going for a killing blow first.

"Move!" He snarled over his shoulder.

Then, there it was. Blood spurted from the now dying thug to make quite the mess of things. So much for a sneaky exit! Still, she was being innocent remember? No dishing out violence for the Aurin.

Sly made a curt nod as she slipped out the door around the Cassian and now dead guard to ghost her way down the hallway swiftly with ears alert to any new dangers. It wouldn't be long before that unfortunate scuffles noises drew others to the scene. The Darkspur Cartel may have been full of pretty pathetic criminals, but they seemed to be attracted to such acts of violence like a Vesper Shark was to fresh blood.

The Agent wouldn't be far behind Sly's tail as the two made good on eating ground with silent feet. Not fast enough for there was the distinct sound of stomping closing in from another direction, from the winding staircase below. This made Sly stop short at the stairs, mind quickly working for another exit or means of escape... Sly sniffed, catching a whiff of crisp night air floating in as her eyes scanned for the source. Escape, ah! The open spaces of the night was calling and wasn't that window big enough?

Two steps, one leap and Sly was out the window in a flash to seemingly abandon her companion. Then ears were hanging upside down as her face peeked back in with Sly harshly whispering, "Move, move, moovvee!" It seems the Aurin had scrambled up the roof and hoped to get the Cassian to do the same. She was gesturing wildly, obviously willing to drag his ass out the window and haul him up.

In a temporary lapse of sanity the agent considered meeting the nearing footsteps. Almost as quickly as the thought crossed his mind he dismissed it. He wasn't one to favor the most violent approach and was already making sloppy mistakes. Like the thug back outside the supply room. How could he have missed hearing his approach? And instead of a knockout or a quick, clean kill like he preferred he had made a clumsy and brutal mess. He was letting the pain and exhaustion get the better of him. A weak agent was a dead one.

Without another pause, the Cassian scrambled for the window. Grabbing hold of the ledge he bodily hauled himself up even as his battered limbs screamed in agony. Halfway out, he twisted around like a cat, grabbing hold of the Aurin's hand as she helped haul him to the roof.

After the Cassian was on the roof, Sly didn't even look back as she bounded up while her nanite technology automatically kicked into high gear to dull her blatantly green silhouette illuminated by moonlight.

The Aurin surveyed the surrounding mountains and brightly glowing loftite crystals haphazardly strewn about the air and mountainsides. Plenty of visibility, but also plenty of shadows cast all around. With the frozen Wilds to the north, the curious floral forest of Galeras seemed the best bet to give coverage and possibly stuff to patch the Agent up with. Oh what Sly wouldn't give for the thick jungles of home.

Once the Cassian caught up to her position, Sly spoke in low tones as she leaned close. "There are patrols inside and outside the perimeter gate and no true coverage. I didn't circle the whole compound when I arrived, so maybe one of these buildings is nestled against the fence for an easier break? That is if you think you can handle such jumps. Also, do you have transport nearby or did you come here by foot?"

Sly didn't try to think about the fact that the Agent most likely had plenty of back up at hand to pick him up for medical attention, and to most likely take her captive.

"East side." The voice of the Cassian drifted softly beside her ear, his form already faded into the shadows. "Only cameras. Fixed in loop of self-generating prepared data."

He shifted, the rustle sounding strange in the nothingness at her side. Sly kept still as the Agent's voice came out of nowhere. They were going full stealth now? So be it. Sly's form fizzled out in full as she sniffed at the air to catch the distinct scent of an overly perfumed Cassian.

"East works for me." Sly followed scent and sound eastward, but since she had not entered this way she was uncertain of the exact path to take. Still, it's not like he could get far on the roof and she'd hear his whines of pain when he ever tried to make a move for the ground.

"All else fails, north side has two guards." He paused as though calculating something. "Shift change in fifteen minutes."

The night shifted at her side and then nothing. He was already on the move.

Camera loops? Must be nice to have access to such high and mighty Dominion goodies, huh? It was currently working to Sly's advantage so she wouldn't question it.

Being invisible to each other most likely wasn't the best option to sneaking out together, but if she lost him? She wouldn't sweat that too much. There was no mistaking the fact that the only thing the Cassian would regret would be getting her hogtied and delivered to the authorities. Now if only he could actually pin anything on her!

Sly paused in her creeping, perching at the edge of the roof to peer down for any sight of those shift changing guards. Her tail swishes across the roof tiles from one side of the Aurin, all the way to the other in slight hope of bumping the Agent to alert him she was here as she eyeballed the little hut where the watch guard must be in.

Gripping the edge of the roof, the agent pivoted himself to lower partially down the wall. His shoulders cried out in distress as he put his weight on them. It took him a moment to calculate the distance of the drop, which is why he had gone completely into stealth. The last thing he wanted to do was be caught by some chance look up the side of the wall. If the Aurin couldn't keep up? Well, that was her problem.

And then the agent was in the foliage at the edge of the building, what little clung around the perimeter. No reaction from the watch hut. Good. Not bothering to see if the Aurin was still with him, the Cassian was already making his way for the side door. He passed beneath the cameras without a blink, confident in both his hacking skills and the technology in his suit. It took but a moment to unlock the heavy maintenance door before he was already slipping out.

Oh. Ears went up at the sound of foliage being crushed under the weight of a certain Agent as Sly was left behind. He really did not seem to work well with others. Sly repressed a sigh, for she understood the feeling but didn't mind trailing behind. As long as he was the one to engage the Cartel in combat, she could appear mostly innocent and non-threatening. A stealthy Aurin wasn't anything new, but a ruthless killer would gain Sly further scrutiny from ICI that she had zero interest in.

Sly leaped from the roof of the building to drop in a tuck and roll as she landed, ending up in a crouch at the door her little Agent 'friend' was opening at the moment. Her hand snapped out, going to place a palm against whatever part of the Cassian was there to still him as she drew near the crack to sniff with ears twitching for any sounds of movement. They did not need a repeat from the last door incident.

Sly nodded, as if he could see and let her hand slip away so the Cassian could blunder into any traps for her as well while she gave the outside perimeter a sweep. They still had time from when they had left that corpse and no guards seemed to be on the move.

In silence, the agent made his way out into the wilderness surrounding the Cartel's makeshift base. He already knew there were no patrols outside. He had plenty of intelligence on the outside of the facilities, but it was a waste of breath foolish arrogance to state while trying to sneak out.

Instead, he invested the effort into tracing his original steps, his excellent memory making the trip back to his transportation short and painless. Behind him the steps of the Aurin became quicker and lighter as they left the looming facilities of the Cartel behind. No more dingy rooms and enclosed fences; just open valleys and craggy hills of the Algoroc landscape.

What appeared to be a rock, shimmered once as he stroked the metal frame, causing the hoverbike to fade into existence.

Dropping his stealth, it would be sort of irrelevant with the sound the engine would make, the agent slipped onto the seat and prepared to move. He paused and turned to look at the Aurin, his gaze suddenly very cold. He did not offer her his hand.

Sly let her Stalker tech fade out to become fully visible as she watched a rock melt into a hoverbike. Her face went blank, looking over the vehicle as she calculated all the wretched ways this could turn out for her. He could just drive straight up to his comrades in arms and toss her into a cage for shipment. He could also just drive them off a cliff...

Also, it was a hoverbike. Sly loathed hoverbikes with an unspeakable passion. Loud, shaky, roaring, uncomfortable. All the un-comforts of a spaceship, but on the ground. What would these humans think of next!? This was a trap. It had to be a trap. He would bring the whole compound on alert when he started that monstrosity up. Fuckity, fuck, fuck fuck. Her ears went back against her skull as she glanced at the Agent.

Sly leaped onto the back of the hoverbike, letting her tail wind tightly about a random bar as her hands did the same with thighs tightened to either side of the bike. Ears were now flat as possible against her head while Sly vainly wished for goggles while she hissed out, "Forest?"

Sly could always leap off the back of the bike if he went straight for anything but the forest...

The Cassian paused a moment, considering. Not the words of the woman behind him but of whether he would take her with. When he started up these engines the entire complex would be alerted. While they may not immediately take it for intrusion they would certainly be suspicious. Exhausted and in pain, he preferred the easiest escape possible. If he left the Aurin behind, she could always act as a distraction. Suit or no, she may not be able to keep a full sweep off her tail in the open rock face before the forest began. The agent's hand twitched. His survival was imperative, even at the cost of a pseudo ally. He had made calls such as this before. So why was he hesitating now? Ally or no, she was a nuisance and an Exile.

It did not take much imagination to image what would happen if the Cartel caught up with her. Though she was clearly more skilled than just a simple florist, but he doubted she had any serious training in the field. There was always that chance. He had seen some terrible things in his time but even so his stomach sickened at the thought. Giving a heavy mental sigh, the agent spurred the engine to life and turned, racing off at breakneck speed into the night.


End file.
